Pakistan's government plans to lunge deep into Taliban territory to stem the tide of deadly attacks around the country.
In preparation of the assault, the government is awaiting shipments of night-vision goggles from the U.S. as ground troops work to cut off insurgent supply routes.
The government has tried three times previously to break into the Taliban stronghold of South Waziristan, but each of those ended with negotiated peace.
However, officials in Pakistan say the recent spate of violence has upped the ante.
"If we fail, everything is rolled back," military spokesman Gen. Athar Abbas told The Associated Press Friday.
Meanwhile, 13 people are dead after a trio of suicide bombers launched an attack on a Peshawar police station in northwest Pakistan.
The Friday afternoon attack saw a car filled with explosives approach the main gates of the police station while being followed by a motorcycle carrying a man and woman, said Peshawar Police Chief Liaquat Ali Khan.
The woman jumped off the motorcycle and charged towards a housing complex, while the man ran his motorcycle into the car, setting off the first blast.
Police fired on the woman -- a rare female suicide bomber -- who promptly detonated explosives she was wearing.
The blast destroyed part of the police station and an adjacent mosque, Khan said.
"If that woman suicide bomber had not been killed, she might have caused more damage," Khan said.
Three police officers, two women and two children were among the dead, local police official Gul Khan said.
Fifteen others were wounded, including a criminal suspect who was being held inside the damaged police station.
Authorities immediately suspected that the Friday blasts were orchestrated by the Taliban, who have been blamed for two weeks of attacks that have killed more than 150 people in Pakistan.
The attack on the Peshawar police station came only one day after militants launched co-ordinated attacks on three law enforcements in Lahore, Pakistan's second-largest city and cultural centre. A government housing complex in Peshawar was also attacked by a car bomb Thursday, resulting in the death of a small child.
There is growing concern in Pakistan that the Taliban are building relationships with other militant groups in the country, a scenario that could greatly increase the threats to the U.S.-allied government.
Initial investigations into the Thursday attacks in Lahore showed the Taliban to be responsible.
"This was a well co-ordinated Taliban operation supported by local groups," said Umer Virk, the head of the Lahore anti-terrorist police, when speaking to The Associated Press.
No start date has been given for the South Waziristan operation, though analysts say it would have to start soon in order to be successful. The army has reportedly sent in two divisions totaling 28,000 troops and has blockaded the area.
Jets pounded six militant positions in South Waziristan on Friday, killing 12 militants and wounding another eight. An intelligence and government official provided the casualty statistics to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorized to speak to media.
Meanwhile in Islamabad, the army chief met with the prime minister and other leaders for talks that included plans for the expected offensive against the militants.
With files from The Associated Press
